wintertime
by zoning
Summary: Roxas/Naminé : He had wooed her here so many years ago, and after all that time, her feelings hadn't changed.


Hello!

R&R please, but no flames.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the story itself—nope, don't own Kingdom Hearts, or Roxas, or Naminé.

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**W**_**i**__n_t_e__**r**_**t**_im_**e**

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It was wintertime.

The park was filled with bright-eyed children her age, swinging clumsily from the frosty swings and sledding down small lumps in the ground they called hills. They were all bundled up in snowsuits and gloves and mittens and hats and scarves, making it difficult to move and easy to topple. More often than not they would fall off the sled or fall all over each other, and they would laugh and laugh until the young girl, who was witnessing these events from afar, was sure they were doing it purposely to make her feel bad.

The mothers of these children stood nearby, (mostly there for conversation and the prospect of picking up on some new Twilight Town gossip) sharp eyes detecting anything out of place. And the one thing out of place, namely, was the girl herself.

"It's that blond girl again," hissed the mothers to one another, proceeding to herd their children and giving them whispered instructions to avoid the strange outsider. Though it was really unnecessary they did, as the children instinctively avoided her. She was naturally an outcast, naturally shy and observant.

The young girl, in fact, was called Naminé, and she had enormous round eyes that were the color of the sky clouded in a lavender haze. Her porcelain skin was not unlike the snow that covered most of the bench she sat upon, and her pale blond hair was cut to rest just above her chest. Though she hadn't cut it in a while, that was obvious. Her long bangs kept slipping into her eyes, and every time they did she would raise a tentative pink mitten to adjust them. That was the only movement she made. The rest of the days on the bench were spent watching.

Early that morning, she had risen out of bed at precisely five o'clock and went to the park. Usually there was no one there, but today there was. He was far away so she paid him no mind—after all, he wouldn't talk to her or anything. No one did. So she rather stiffly, all done up in pink winter gear, sat down on the bench.

What happened next surprised the young girl.

The boy she had seen earlier was approaching. He was walking towards her. As he neared Naminé could get a better look at him—messy golden hair, fair skin, winter jacket, and these striking blue eyes. They were the exact color of the sky, and, unlike hers, they were not clouded in a lavender haze.

Immediately, she could tell this boy was different. She didn't know how she knew, she just…sensed it. It was in the way he walked, and how he regarded her with such easygoing words:

"Hey," he grinned. "I'm Roxas."

Her young heart fluttered and then it all began.

* * *

It was wintertime.

Snowflakes stumbled from the sky, landing on her already-frost-licked nose. She sniffed, trying to wrinkle away the fast-falling flakes. It wasn't as if she could raise a gloved hand and brush away the flakes—oh, no. Her arms were preoccupied with the massive amount of wrapped packages that she was carrying along with her.

_Stupid Kairi and her parties_, thought Naminé. The blond had never been a person that fancied the idea of going out and having fun at social events, such as the one she was being forced to go to presently. Her friend Kairi, however, was simply the opposite. She was always the one handing out invitations at school, the kind that were printed specially and smelled rather nice. Just this year Kairi had hosted…let's see now—_nine _parties, and in Naminé's world that was basically considered a world record. All of the redheaded girl's parties tied in with holidays, whether it a St. Patrick's Day celebration, or maybe even a _Christmas party. _Her large eyes narrowed.

She huffed impatiently as she hobbled along, arms piled up with presents, barely able to see where she was going. But from what she could see, Naminé was probably at the park.

"Naminé?"

At that voice, that voice that she loved so dearly, she spun around, not thinking twice about what the consequences of such a speedy turn could be. Presents scattered everywhere on the slick path, and she reddened in embarrassment.

"H-Hi, Roxas." She smiled, lowering her head and letting her bangs shroud her eyes as she attempted to pick up the fallen boxes.

"Here, let me help," he said, and she looked up to steal a glance at him. Same tousled blond hair, same blue eyes.

As she was rid of the things that had previously been piled on her, Naminé could freely gaze at where she was. She had guessed correctly, she was at the park.

She sighed softly. He had wooed her here so many years ago, and after all that time her feelings had not changed in the slightest way. She really needed to grow up.

He put down his own presents and bent down to help her gather the packages, placing them neatly in her arms, one by one. "Are you heading to Kairi's too?" Roxas asked her.

"Yes."

"Are you excited?"

"Not particularly," she admitted. "I'm not much of a party person."

"Then why are you going?"

His question alarmed her, and she gave him a startled look. "Kairi's my friend."

"So?"

"_So?_ So she's my friend! I'm not going to let her down, she's very excited about this party."

At this point Naminé was unable to see Roxas, the presents blocking her vision, and to give him a harsh look she set them down.

Under her sharp gaze, Roxas grinned as if he had been joking all along—but the sincerity in his eyes showed he wasn't. Namine had a feeling he was testing her.

He stopped smiling for a moment to say, "You're really selfless, Naminé." He dropped his gaze and focused, instead, on their surroundings. "I remember that day when I first met you here."

She beamed. "Yeah…you were my first friend."

Roxas smiled, and even though she wasn't looking his way, she could feel the burn of his deep blue gaze upon her, warming her against the winter chill. "Let's sit down," he abruptly suggested, taking her hand (she blushed) and leading her over to a nearby bench.

For moments they sat and just watched the snowflakes fall.

"You were mine too," he said.

"Your what?"

"First friend."

"I find it hard to believe that," she scoffed. "Why didn't people like such an amazing kid like you? You were always so friendly and handsome and sweet. And you still are, of course," she smiled at him.

"I don't kn—" The boy started, but he stopped short, turning to look at her with a mischievous grin.

She noticed this, and tilted her head, puzzled. "What?"

His smirk didn't falter for an instant. "Did you say…_handsome_?"

Naminé turned scarlet and didn't know what to say, but luckily she didn't have to, as Roxas saved her the trouble of speaking by leaning over and gently kissing her.

Suddenly, nothing mattered. Kairi's party was forgotten, the presents that still lay on the path remained, and the fact that the snow was falling fast was completely unimportant. The only thing that mattered was the both of them, together. Roxas and Naminé.

Snowflakes fell onto their faces and they didn't bother to brush them away.


End file.
